By JOSHUA COFFMAN jcoffman@thenewsenterprise.com ELIZABETHTOWN — Before starting gardens at their new homes, they brought something old with them. Mo Loyall brought an aluminum ladder with which her father had painted and a large metal wheel given to her by a neighbor. She used them as props in her new garden. David Overall brought a rare weeping Korean lilac, as well as some other trees. The lilac now folds down onto the edge of his backyard pool. Both home gardeners have entered their labors of love into the local garden club’s annual fundraising tours in past years. Overall’s gardens will be featured again this year during the June 29 event. They recently gave a preview of what’s to come, and what’s to bloom, this summer. Overall’s three-acre property, located in Mill Creek subdivision, is bordered at the back by two adjoining creeks. The first thing he did when he moved in was build a stone-trimmed gate and stone staircase stepping down to one of the creeks, and plant a naturalized garden of daffodils and hostas. Overall, who moved to the home 10 years ago, plants his porches each year with annuals. A fern garden and bed of English ivy complete a terrace that leads to the back yard. The pool is trimmed in colorful arrangements of daylilies outlined in English boxwood, Saunders hybrid peonies and yellow oleander, a tropical bloom that adds color around the swimming area. Overall relies on Frank Otte nursery to help keep the beds in order; often spending four days a week outside keeping it up. However, by July, he hits the pool when it heats up and allows nature to take its course. “Then I let the weeds have their turn,” he said. Overall’s advice to gardeners is to mass plant items ... “It’s more fun to cut things back than to beg them to grow,” he said. … and to stick to one or two color themes. “Too many colors get confusing,” he said. Overall, an antique Chinese porcelain dealer by trade, said he always has been a gardener at heart, taking after his grandfather. “It’s relaxing, therapeutic, I guess,” he said. “It’s beautiful to look at — when there are no weeds.” Adrian and Mo Loyall moved to Poplar Trace from LaRue County nine years ago. Their country-styled house is trimmed in white lattice and features to themed outbuildings, one of which being a playhouse — complete with TV and sandbox — for their great grandchildren. The playhouse is connected to the back of the house by a series of sparsely placed bushes of mane-hair grass. The couple uses a golf cart to get up and down the sloping back yard. Mo Loyall previously owned Morrison’s Garden Center in Hodgenville, facilitating her passion for yard work. Her husband, Adrian, added an ornamental pond two years ago and dotted it with yellow pansies, offsetting the white borders seen throughout the property. The construction of the pond, done by hand with the help of a neighbor and daughter, also brought a handful of koi and lily pads to populate it. The koi have spawned into a school of fishes in a multitude of colors. The back yard becomes a popular destination for the Loyall family during the summer months. “It’s really enjoyable to sit out here late in the afternoon,” Adrian said. Mo offered a couple of tips to would-be gardeners: Keep the weeds pulled and stay busy. “It’s something you gotta enjoy doing,” she said. “You can’t just plant something and let it go.” How to grow your garden — Don't over fertilize and don't crowd plants together; it causes lots of diseases — Grow plants adapted to the area — Don't over water — Woody plants, like shrubs and trees, should be planted at the correct depth — Don't over mulch. Spread mulch evenly so water can get through - Source: Amy Aldenderfer, Horticulture specialist, Hardin County Extension Joshua Coffman can be reached at (270) 505-1740.